Aludra and the Golden Locket
by J. Beth Zelazny
Summary: One orphan's journey to discover who she is amidst the turmoil of attending Hogwarts. Follows the third book by JK Rowling
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hey guys. Just wanted to apologize to those of you who actually took the time to read these few chapters and waited patiently for the following ones that never came. it's been a very busy semester, but now I'm going through the chapters and editing them here and there and adding more detail, etc. to refresh my memory of what I've done so far and, hopefully, be able to get more chapters out during my free time this semester, if I can find some. Thanks everyone and please give me as much feedback as possible! I love to hear from you all!

The two young girls waited patiently, hands clasped in their laps, as they sat awaiting their judgement. The sky was pitch black outside, a new moon, but the older of the two girls, the pale one with the unnaturally dark eyes and hair, could sense that it was well past midnight, the so-called "haunting hour". A warm breeze blew through the open window, reminding the girls that summer was, sadly, drawing to an end. It blew a few strands of the mop of fluffy, white hair that lay limp on top of the portly headmistress' head as she scrutinized each girl in turn.

"I was in the middle of some much needed sleep when Professor Lilith had to fetch me out of bed to deal with the two of you trouble-makers." The blonde, angelic thirteen-year-old wrung her slender, tan hands, while her pale blue eyes studied the worn panel floor. There was an area worn into the floorboards in front of the headmistress' desk that was lighter than the rest; it was worn in the shape of two letters 'AP', her companion's initials. The edges of her mouth twitched upwards for a moment at the sight of it. Aludra's cobalt blue, almost feral, eyes twinkled with mischief.

"I'm very sorry that your beauty rest was disturbed on our behalf, Miss Brach. It's very obvious that you were in dire need of it." Kristin stifled a giggle, glancing at her smug companion. Headmistress Brach was not quite so amused. With a single glare from her, Kristin focused all the more intently on the rubbings on the floor.

"The point is, Miss Perse, that you were warned about your aversion to prank pulling, and you, of course, did not heed me. It would be wrong for me not to follow through with the punishment promised you." The twinkle left Aludra's eyes.

"What are we being accused of _exactly_?" If there was any chance of getting out of this, Aludra'd find it. The headmistress leaned forward in her chair, narrowing her beady little eyes. Now she was the one with the smug look on her face.

"One of your classmates was found locked in one of the classrooms in a cabinet and she says that it was the two of you who did it."

"Now see here, she deserved that! When Kristin and I got home tonight, we found her with her wand in the face of one of the younger girls, trying to force her to do who knows what, and I was simply teaching her a lesson about picking on people who younger and weaker than her." Headmistress Brach sat back with a scrutinizing look and crossed her arms across her chest.

"You and Miss Kristin were out tonight? Again? Against the orphanage rules?" Aludra grimaced. "You aren't going to get out of this one. I've got you one way or another."

"So you're going to kick us out?" Aludra leveled a cool, hard gaze at the portly woman slouching in the desk before her. Kristin jerked her head up, glancing in terror from the headmistress to her elder companion.

"You can't...you can't kick us out!" she stammered. "If you do, where would we go? How would we survive?" Looking to Aludra for support, she saw the hard, calculating girl that so often lay dormant beneath the fun-loving, trouble-making exterior.

"She won't put you out on the street, Kristin, not this close to your adoption going through." Her cold eyes remained locked with those of their headmistress.

"But you can't kick Ali out either! She's the cleverest student you have here. You need her. The kids learn more from her than from their professors!"

"That's the beauty of it; I don't have to kick her out. The arrangements have already been made for her removal from this orphanage by someone else. Miss Kristin, you may retire to your room now, and on the way out, let the man in the chair outside know he can come in now." Kristin's eyes pleaded for a solution that would keep her friend off the streets, but even Aludra seemed hardened towards her fate and would not meet her gaze. Defeated, she rushed from the room in tears, hardly pausing to pass on the message to the elderly warlock in the foyer.

Aludra couldn't believe that anything would be worse than this place, so she squared her shoulders, prepared to meet her fate head on, with as much courage as a girl her age could muster. That's when the wizard passed through the open doorway behind her and approached the headmistress' desk. He turned to face her, holding himself up with an almost regal air. She recognized him from various pictures she had seen and stories she'd heard, but even she, who was hardly surprised by anything anymore, felt small and impotent in his presence. The cold, hard gaze she had fixed the headmistress with softened imperceptibly at the sight of this genius of magic. For a moment her heart hoped, but her reason drowned it before it could take root; there was no need to hope, for nothing good ever happened to her, save her best, and only, friend Kristin. No one had given her reason to trust them except Kristin, and Albus Dumbledore was no exception.

"Aludra, it does me a deal of good to see you well after all these years." The blue eyes behind the half moon spectacles twinkled gaily, like a child, and his long, silvery beard, which matched the silver of this long hair, twitched in what she knew must be a smile. But she saw something else, a kindness perhaps, in those eyes of his that quelled the anger within her at being forgotten and cast aside her whole life, at least momentarily.

"Apparently we've met before?"

"You were just learning to walk, if my memory serves me right."

"I'm sure it does, but I don't really remember anything before being dumped on the steps of this old place, with only a name and this locket around my neck. So excuse me if I seem rude, but what is this all about, here?" She couldn't help but be suspicious after everything she'd been through, and, knowing that, sympathy for the girl rose in him and he smiled sadly at her. She almost felt sorry for causing him pain when he seemed to mean her no harm.

"I am here to collect you, as you have been accepted to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as a third year student. We are to leave immediately." She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had dreamed of this day her whole life, the day she would be rescued from this horrible place. Sure, she had imagined her long lost parents doing the rescuing, but who was she to be picky about such things. There had to be a catch. As soon as she opened her mouth to comment, he cut her off, though not in a harsh manner. "Any questions you may have must wait until we are on our way. Please pack your belongings, I will be along momentarily." For the first time in her life, Ali didn't make some witty reply or try to resist being forced into something. With one last, defiant glare at her, former, headmistress, she turned and strode out the door, with her usual air of confidence, despite the night's excitement.

"Hogwarts!" Kristin's eyes almost popped out of her head. Aludra had expected her to be sad or upset or even angry at how unfair this all was for Kristin, but the excitement Aludra saw on her face baffled her. "Bloody hell, Ali! That's wonderful!"

"Er…yeah...I guess." Carelessly tossing what few, pathetic belongings she possessed into the worn trunk, she could almost picture the indignant look she was sure was sure her friend was wearing in response to her flippant remark.

"What do you mean, 'I guess'? This is the best thing to ever happen to you! You're almost 14, Ali. This is your last chance for a real life. You're smart enough to realize when your destiny has been changed as drastically as tonight."

"All right, all right. It is pretty cool, I'll admit that much." Peaking over her shoulder she saw Kristin, hands on hips with the very expression she had imagined. Aludra snickered as she returned to her packing. Behind her, Kristin gasped and dove into the bottom of her own bureau. Aludra watched her in the mirror over her dresser. As she peered curiously at her friend in the mirror's reflection, a glint of gold at her neck caught her attention. An oddly untarnished gold locket rested on her collarbone. The pad of her thumb remembered every peak and valley of the crest engraved on the front half of the locket as she held it between her fingers. It comforted her, somehow, to have that tiny connection to the family she had never known, but knows existed at some point in time.

"Here! These are for you." Aludra jerked in surprise and turned around to face Kristin, who was clutching a picture frame to her chest so Aludra couldn't see what it was of and holding a change purse out to her at arm's length.

"What's this?" She eyed the cracked, brown leather purse dangling from Kristin's hand with suspicion.

"It's enough money to buy yourself a better broom than the money Hogwarts is going to give you."

"Why do I need more than just a basic broom?" She continued to regard the money sourly. Kristin's eyes narrowed in irritation.

"Don't play dumb with me."

"What?" Ali batted her eyes and imitated all the innocent, child like expressions she'd ever seen. Somehow it seemed weird on her.

"You know very well that you are a great beater…"

"Well, I wouldn't say 'great'…"

"Good enough to make your house team…"

"Decent, perhaps, but not 'great'."

"And maybe with some practice you could even play professionally some day, just like you've always dreamed of."

"Unless I end up in Slytherin where they don't allow girls on the team..." Kristin looked horrified at Aludra's last remark. "…but I'm sure I won't end up there," Aludra assured her, regretting her previous remark the moment it left her mouth. Kristin still seemed worried. "I'm sure of it." She managed a half smile which Kristin reluctantly returned. The poor girl saw things as black and white, good and bad, and, in her mind, Gryffindor was synonymous with good and Slytherin with evil. Aludra had spent enough time on the streets and read enough books already by the age of 14 that she realized the world was, in fact, mostly gray. To her, Gryffindor and Slytherin meant the same thing: power. Being in either of those houses would offer her more than pretty much any other position in the wizarding world, but of course, she couldn't admit those feelings to Kristin, being as sweetly naive as she was. After a short pause, Aludra reached out and took the purse; she knew it was the only thing to cheer her up. Besides, taking the money didn't mean she had to spend it and she could always return it to her some day in the future. "So what's that?" Kristin glanced down at the picture frame she still held on to.

"Oh, this! I've had this longer than any other possession of mine…and now I want you to have it." She offered it to Aludra, face down.

"Kristin, I don't want-" She flipped over the frame and froze, speechless. Still staring at the picture, horrified, she drew a short breath. "Oh my." Her shock suddenly turned to accusation. "You swore to me that you burned this thing years ago!"

"It's the only picture I have of the two of us. Besides, look how cute we are. I think you're actually smiling." Kristin reached over the top of the frame and pointed to one of the figures in the picture, proudly.

"Kristin, I'm not kidding. I could get in a lot of trouble for this. And you, too, for keeping my secret." She just smiled.

"Promise me you'll keep it on your night-stand?" Kristin pried the picture from Aludra's fingers and placed it on top of the pile of clothes, shutting the trunk. "I'm going to miss you. I promise to write every day to tell you about my new family." She wrapped her arms around Aludra's neck and hugged her tight. She returned the embrace, fighting back the unexpected emotional flood. Blinking back the tears that threatened to spill down her face, she grasped on to the one shred of optimism she could find; at least this time she was doing the leaving for once, instead of being the one left.

Aludra followed along behind Dumbledore, dragging her trunk, as they made their way down the street and away from the darkened orphanage. It was the middle of the night yet, so she didn't expect anyone to be awake, especially not the children of the orphanage. She had pictured leaving the orphanage behind to be a joyous occasion, but instead she felt a twinge of sadness that dampened her spirits. _No, I'm stronger than this and I can make the best of this situation. I may be leaving the only home I've ever known, but this is the only opportunity I will have to make something of myself. By the time I graduate, people will remember my name._ _Besides, _her empty hand wandered to the locket around her throat once again, _this may be the break I need to find out where I'm from, who my parents were, and why they left me like they did._ The elderly warlock broke her from her reverie.

"I'm sure you're just exploding with questions for me." He paused to let her catch up. She hadn't really been exploding, but when he said this, things she did wish to ask him came to mind.

"Why am I being accepted as a third year? As far as I know, Hogwarts has never done that before." Pushing his glasses higher up on his nose, he cleared his throat before answering.

"We made a mistake and now we plan to put things right. Your grandmother, a dear friend of mine, wanted you to be safe from those who would harm you-"

"Like Voldemort?"

"Yes, like Voldemort, and those who risked their lives and the lives of their families to destroy him. Somehow, we're not sure exactly how, your name was removed from the list of those destined for Hogwarts."

"Wait, why would his _enemies_ come after me after he died?"

"I wish I could tell you, but that's not my place." She eagerly opened her mouth to press him more, but he cut her short for the second time that night.

" Please, don't ask me any more questions concerning your parents. It's better if you leave that alone for the time being." This response did not satisfy her in the least, but she held her tongue.

"I'm assuming the school has a fund set up for children in my position? And I am to be sorted along with the first years upon arrival?"

"Yes and yes. You will speak with the head of your house the following morning at breakfast as to which classes you are taking and when."

"I suppose the only thing left to ask is where I'm staying for the next week before classes begin?" Dumbledore grinned with childish enthusiasm at what he apparently considered a great secret.

"Take my arm, my dear, and we will be on our way." Taking the arm proffered her, she wondered where it was he was whisking her off to. With a pop, she was plunged into an endless darkness that threatened to crush her. Fighting down the panic that welled up inside her, she tightened her grip on his arm and her trunk. Just when she felt like she would be crushed, they burst out into the warm, summer night air. She gazed at the tall, slightly askew house before them curiously.

"Molly and Arthur are probably waiting up for us in the kitchen. See, the light's still on."

"Molly and Arthur who?"

"Weasley." Aludra paused on the path to the front door, causing the headmaster to pause as well.

"The Weasleys? Are you serious?" Winking, Dumbledore smiled.

"Come on, I think you'll like it." Continuing on down the path, Aludra had to hurry to catch up. He had barely raised his hand to knock on the door when it was flung open and a plump, little, red-headed woman blocked the way. Spotting Aludra, she rushed past Dumbledore as if he wasn't even there and squeezed her until she felt like her ribs would crack.

"Let's get you inside where I can see you better." Before she could protest, Mrs. Weasley pushed her up the stairs and into the house, leaving the trunk in the yard. Mr. Weasley was waiting for them in the kitchen.

"Arthur, go grab Aludra's trunk, will you? It's out in the yard." Molly spun Aludra around and held her at arm's length, looking her up and down.

"Much, much too thin. Well, we'll fix that, won't we?" Her smile was warm, motherly. Aludra had seen that look only a few times in her life, and never before directed at her. How could this woman have such kind feelings towards a strange, gangly girl like herself, especially on first meeting her? It didn't make sense. "Would you like something to eat?"

"I think it would be best for her to sleep right now while the three of us talk about important matters."

"Oh, of course. Come along, dear." Aludra met Dumbledore's gaze over her shoulder as she moved to follow Mrs. Weasley up the stairs. There was a twinkle in his eye that hinted towards more tricks up his sleeve. She did, however, notice that he seemed somewhat relieved to have her off his hands, but she figured that with the term starting up again soon he simply had a great deal to take care of in the next week and she was only one of them.

"You'll be sharing a bunk bed with Ginny for the time being. Ginny's on the top, so you can take the bottom," Mrs. Weasley whispered as she opened the door to one of the rooms on the 2nd floor. "See you in the morning and sleep well."

"Good night and thank you." As soon as the door closed, Aludra's eyes found the bed. She didn't realize how tired she was until now. Kicking off her shoes, she tumbled into the bed and immediately fell asleep. Her last thought before sleep took her was how this was the first night she could remember spending in a real house instead of an orphanage or out in the elements.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The next few days before the arrival of the Hogwarts Express at King's Cross did not go quite as Aludra had imagined. Her plan had been to be as cold to these people as she could, since she knew they must abhor the very idea of having some orphan brat taking up space and eating their food with no benefit offered them. Even if they acted nice to her, as she was sure they would since they must be decent beings for Dumbledore to leave her with them, the purest of hate must lurk underneath, and what else would she expect from a family that has lived in poverty their entire lives? It was how she would feel in their places. As soon as they reached Diagon Alley, she planned to split from them, leaving them to their friends and their original plans, before she was thrust upon them. She was not the kind of girl to impinge upon another person for longer than was necessary. Given the chance, she was positive that she could have made it on her own for the next few days until the train came, but now that she was here she knew they would never knowingly let her leave.

All of this crossed her mind as she lay in the bottom bunk, the bed above her vacant. Eager, and quite boisterous, voices from downstairs mumbled together into a gentle roar, joined by the aroma of a breakfast not grand, but definitely better than any she had partaken in at the orphanage. She would have to face them sooner or later, and it had always been her philosophy to get the worst over so she could enjoy the better times longer. Slipping out from beneath the covers, she deftly arranged the bedspread as if no one had slept in it the night before. Her small, dinged and scraped trunk sat in the corner, the lock untouched. Well at least she knew they had some respect for her privacy. Removing the spell she had placed upon the lock the previous evening just in case someone would try to pry into her life, she changed into a faded gray t-shirt she had owned for several years now, back when it was actually loose on her, and some threadbare blue jeans. A quick brush through her long black hair, returning it to its usual pony tail, and she was ready for this next encounter.

Padding down the wood stairs, which had been worn smooth from countless years of use, in her bare feet, she reached the open door of the kitchen where it seemed the whole lot of them had congregated. Taking a deep breath, she stepped into the doorway, but everyone was so busy with their conversations that they didn't even notice her there. Mrs. Weasley, the plump, red-headed woman she had met the night before, bustled around the kitchen adding the finishing touches to the breakfast. At the table sat two twin boys with their backs to her, whispering incantations at something on the seat between them, the both hunched over in a scheming sort of way. Across from them a shorter, but just as lanky, boy leaned fruitlessly over the table to see what they were whispering about. Beside him a small girl hummed softly, her nose in a book, and not a school book, by the looks of it. And at the head of the table, the end closest to the door, sat Mr. Weasley, taller and thinner than his wife, but definitely carrying some weight appropriate for his age. Every one of them had hair even redder than the picture she had seen of them in the paper just a few days ago. Amidst all the chaos, they seemed genuinely happy, which shouldn't have surprised her, since she knew from experience that those with the least were sometimes the ones who got the most enjoyment from life. She had seen it all around the orphanage, but she had never experienced that kind of joy herself. Sure, she had had short moments where she was truly happy, but as soon as the moment ended, she was back to the duty she had laid upon herself to become great and powerful so she could escape from the life she had been thrown into; always studying books and practicing spells. But this family, they were smiling and laughing like she used to before life fell upon her.

The boy was the first to notice her standing there. Giving up on his futile attempts to spy his brothers' new trick, he glanced up towards his mother and, in the process, spied Aludra watching them all with a bit of a bewildered look upon her face. Immediately he froze, still half standing and at a loss for words, or so it seemed.

"Oh...hello." The stammered greeting seemed all he could muster at the moment, but it didn't matter for the rest of them soon piped in as well. Mrs. Weasley spun away from the stove where a wooden spoon was stirring something with a thick consistency.

"Well, good morning, dear! I wondered how long you would sleep in with how late you showed up here last night. You must have been exhausted, poor thing." The woman acted as if she was going to come her way and probably even hug her, so Aludra had to think fast, remembering the crushing hug from the night before. Grasping at anything,

"Do you smell something burning?" Mrs. Weasley didn't see the noticeable flinch Aludra gave as she approached her, but quickly whipped around towards her stove, shrieking about her breakfast. Looking back over at the table, the young girl simply glanced up, bored with the whole idea, and quickly returned to her book. Mr. Weasley set down his paper and twisted in his chair to see her better. Just like his wife he seemed to radiate sunshine this morning, shown by his enormous smile and twinkling eyes. Aludra thought it might be just too much for her. She never did like attention.

"It's good to have you with us! Go on, take a seat." As soon as he said it the twin boys, who had up to that moment been sizing her up like potential competition, slid apart leaving a space more than enough for her to sit between them.

"Here's a spot." The one on the left smiled and patted the bench between them.

"Don't worry, we don't bite." The other on the right smiled the same smile. Looking from one to the other left her more than a little suspicious of their intentions, especially with the knowledge that they had been muttering spells on that spot only moments before. Manners meant they couldn't do anything horrible to her and she could always pay them back for any prank they pulled on her, so she moved to sit there, offering them a small smile. The smaller boy spoke up before she did, though. "Careful, those two are almost always up to something." Smiling graciously, she replied.

"Thanks for the warning." It was very odd seated between the twins since, though she was a little taller than average for her age, they were still several heads taller than she. The younger boy managed to find his seat, but still seemed awed by her somehow. She resisted the urge to fidget under his dazed stare, knowing that nothing about her appearance could be causing his reaction. Mr. Weasley set down his paper and peered at Aludra as he folded his hands, elbows resting on the table.

"I suppose introductions are in order. That's Ginny, the one with her nose in the book, Ron beside her, to your left is Fred and to your right is George, the twin troublemakers of the bunch. And I don't know where Percy...

"I'm right here. Geez, I come to breakfast at a decent time, rather than the ungodly hour all of you wake up at, and suddenly I'm 'late'." A miserable looking boy practically strutted from the doorway of the kitchen over to the bench beside his youngest brother Ron. His spectacles hung precariously on the tip of his long nose and his hair, slightly less red than the rest of his family's, fluffed on top of his head giving Aludra the image of a lonely, eccentric, miserable old miser. She seemed to be right about all of it, except the old and the miser parts.

"Dad was just wondering where you were.

"Right, no need to take it personally," the twins chimed in. Grumbling under his breath, Percy noticed Aludra for the first time, pausing in his ill mood to scrutinize this new intrusion. He was the only one who reacted the way Aludra had expected, pretending to be civil while secretly despising her within. Through his false smile, he managed to remember his manners.

"You must be Aludra. It's a pleasure to have you with us, even under the circumstances." This peaked Aludra's curiosity.

"Circumstances? And what would those be?" Aludra arched an eyebrow in suspicion. He was being a bit abrasive and things didn't bode well for this encounter.

"You know, you being abandoned as a child and all. It's all very tragic. But if that hadn't happened, you wouldn't be with us right now." Percy was obviously a sour person and Aludra wondered how someone living every day with a family like this could be so very different from the rest. Aludra did not take kindly to the mention of her parents, however, and had to restrain herself in order to keep the fire of rage she felt inside from awakening at this boy's stupid insensitivity.

"I must say how very tactful you are in bringing up the subject of my parents, which every other decent human being in the world would know should be the last thing to mention to a girl who has been raised in an orphanage pretty much her whole life. However, since you insist on getting right to the point, the point being my parents' apparent abandonment of myself, I must say that circumstances lean more towards the idea that my parents are deceased, so that I am, in fact, an orphan, and not simply a cast aside remnant of lost love." There was a small glint in her cobalt eyes that betrayed the enjoyment of putting Percy in his place, but she was able to completely conceal the surprise she felt at controlling her temper like she did. Self-control was not one of her more well known qualities. She had, in fact, almost immediately resorted to jinxing any of the children who pushed her buttons. She had seen no reason to restrain herself from punishing those insolent brats, but this was different. Now that she was in this more sophisticated realm where child wizards and witches went to prestigious boarding schools, there were certain rules and regulations to follow, certain unwritten ideas of tact and composure that must be adhered to if she wanted to move up in the world. She was, however, surprised that she had been able to restrain herself from the outburst welling up within her and instead being able to respond in a calm, yet superior manner. She would get no where by losing her temper anymore. Percy acted like he wanted to respond, but he was at a loss for words at the moment, though his composure remained collected. The twins glanced at one another, obviously impressed with the way Aludra had handled their brother and were eager to see how she held up under their own battery of pranks. Mrs. Weasley had, by that time, finished with the preparations for breakfast and proceeded to move everything to the kitchen table where they  
were seated.

"Now Percy, darling, please remember that Aludra here has been through enough troubles already and doesn't need you giving her a hard time as well. Now everyone dig in before it gets cold." At the word all the children around her began grabbing for whatever food they could, George succeeding in his fight for the orange juice. After pouring himself a glass, he smiled at Aludra, filling up her glass as well. Passing the juice on to Fred, on her other side, she turned to see George heaping spoonfuls of his mother's oatmeal into her oversized bowl. She would never be able to eat that much.

"That's more than enough, thank you!" she quickly responded, but not unkindly. Looking desperately at her bowl at the portion enough to feed two people her size, Ron jumped in.

"Here, I'll take half of that for you. The bowl'll be empty by the time I get it anyways," since Percy had obtained the oatmeal first. When Ron had rescued her from being drowned in her own breakfast, Mrs. Weasley hopped up to fetch the biscuits she had forgotten in the oven.

"Aludra, dear, if you don't mind my asking, what was it like living in that orphanage? I mean, there must be some regulations on how they treat you at a place like that, right?" Aludra turned around, towards Fred, in order to see Mrs. Weasley better, feeling it impolite to not do so.

"Well, the Ministry of Magic could really care less about how the orphanage treats the students there. I honestly believe that the only reason I and the other older children there survived at that place as long as we did was because of the freedom to leave in the afternoons when classes were over and go wherever we wished. We learned a lot more on the streets of London than we did in those dusty classrooms. Other than that, all the younger children sleep in one large room with a center aisle with only the space beneath your bed to keep your meager possessions. One the children reached school age, though, they are moved into small, two person rooms with a bunkbed, a closet for each, and a short armoire for each as well. The trunk I bought with money I earned from doing small chores for the people around town."

"One large room for the younger ones? How many were there at your orphanage? And did they feed you well enough?"

"I would say there were about thirty children from the ages of 2 to 10 when I left and only 5 of us of school age. Most of the kids, when they reach school age, bolt, leaving the orphanage for a life on the streets since there's not much chance of being adopted once a child is that old. As for meals, they would feed us a small breakfast and a meager meal in between lunch and dinner. It was enough for us to live off of, but a lot of the kids, especially the younger ones, suffered from malnutrition from time to time. Nothing that's not expected from living in those conditions, though." Mrs. Weasley simply shook her head in disbelief as she set the biscuits on the table and returned to her seat. Turning back around, Aludra stopped in wonderment at the sight of her orange juice. In the time that she had been speaking with Mrs. Weasley her juice had taken on a brilliant plum coloring. Glancing suspiciously at Fred's glass, his orange juice was still orange. Sure enough, so was George's. In amazement she returned her gaze back to her own glass. Did they honestly believe she wouldn't notice that they had put something in her juice or did they simply not realize that what they planned to give her would react to the orange juice in that manner? Smirking amusedly, she took several large spoonfuls of the oatmeal in rapid succession. It was hard not to want to down the entire bowl in one gulp. Not that she was that hungry, though she was quite famished, it was just that she had never tasted anything quite like it. Sure she had had oatmeal before, but this had a certain flavor she couldn't quite place. With the oatmeal dripping off her spoon half way between her mouth and the bowl, she froze and realized she had made a dreadful miscalculation. The boys on either side of her were shaking and hiding their faces from her as they tried to keep from laughing out loud. She had been duped; when they realized how the potion they had reacted to the juice, they had turned around and put it in her oatmeal as well, except this time it didn't turn it purple. Putting her spoon down apprehensively, she looked from one to the other.

"What did you two do?" Their shaking became worse and Fred began making a sound as if he were choking. George simply started whimpering slightly at the force with which he was holding back the laughter. "Spill it.

"George did it," Fred squeaked, which was all he could manage at the moment; he was still shaking, but now he was snorting as he slowly lost control. George gave a barking laugh and spun around to look at Fred.

"Traitor!" But before Aludra could respond, George glanced at her and fell over backwards off the bench because of the force of his laughter. Fred buried his head in his arms, leaning on the table for support as his entire body shook with his silent laughs. Aludra opened her mouth to question them again, but Ginny spoke up for the first time that morning.

"You're face is turning purple, like the color of your drink." Aludra sighed, waiting for the boys to finish with their fits, because there was no way they could tell her how to reverse what they had done until they had finished. Finally Fred sat up, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes while George lay on the floor, gasping for breath. There had been just enough oatmeal left for Aludra to get a new bowl, so she had finished her breakfast by the time they were in any kind of state to help her out. After some coaxing, they finally told her that the coloring would fade on its own and she would be back to normal by tomorrow morning.

The rest of the day was spent doing little chores around the house, like taking care of some nuisance lawn gnomes out in the garden or scrubbing the windows till they were indeed transparent again. George and Fred continued to lay traps for her, but she caught on quickly and made sure not to turn her back on them for a moment and the day ended with no further incident at the hands of the twins. Ron was quite friendly, she realized, when he became more comfortable around her, and by the end of the day he was rambling on about his two best friends, Harry and Hermione. But Ginny was still as closed to her as ever, as was Percy. It didn't matter to her, though, because she would only be here for one more day and then it was off to the Hogwarts Express for school. That night, as she lay in bed with Ginny fast asleep in the bed above her, she plotted out her scheme to get back at those fiendish twins. I'll show them I have a rightful place in this family. Before she could react to that surprising thought, she was fast asleep, for she had never felt a bed as comfortable as this.


	3. Chapter 3: Revised

The house was abuzz with preparations for going to the city. Even upstairs in Ginny's room she could hear Mrs. Weasley scurrying from floor to floor hurrying people along.

"Ron, dear, are you still in bed!" she could hear through the paper-thin walls. "Get that lazy bottom of yours up and dressed in ten minutes or we're leaving you behind, and that's a promise!" All of a sudden she realized the scuffling steps were coming towards her and Ginny. Aludra was sitting on the edge of her bed when Ginny sat up and jumped down off the top bunk in one fluid motion just in time for her mother to walk in. Ali had to stop from giggling at the comical way her red hair frizzed to match her mood this morning. She saw Ali first.

"Ah, Aludra, dear, thank you for being up and dressed already. You and I seem the only ones in this house capable of being on time." Then she turned a tired look on Ginny. "Well, at least you're up. Now dress nicely and be downstairs in ten minutes!" With that she shut the door and moved on to the rest of the house.

"Fred! George! You two are NOT wearing those to Diagon Alley! Upstairs, now!" Aludra had to smile. She heard hurried footsteps up the stairs.

"Ouch, Mum! We're moving, we're moving."

"Yah, no need for the broom!" Aludra laughed looking to Ginny to see if she was as amused. Ginny gave a bit of a smile at her brothers' shenanigans and turned to her duty of being dressed in ten minutes.

Ten minutes later, with Mrs. Weasley waiting at the bottom of the stairs, Mr. Weasley calmly reached the bottom landing by the front door and turned to stare up the stairs as well. No sound from upstairs. Mrs. Weasley let out a bellowing yell.

"Ron, Ginny, Percy, Fred and George! Downstairs now! We're leaving." Before she had even finished, a rumbling erupted downstairs as every single child in the house tried to rush down the stairs at the same time. Aludra laughed as she watched the traffic jam that occurred on the stairs outside Ginny's door. Fred and George pushed and shoved their way through the other kids (Ron and Ginny) to make it to the front of the mess. Sniggering the whole way down, Aludra followed them down the stairs with Percy just behind her.

"Aw, Mum, you forgot to yell Aludra's name. Now she's gonna feel left out. Happy?" One of the twins, she couldn't tell which, stood with his hands on his hips in a good imitation of his mother as he said this. Mrs. Weasley simply rolled her eyes, but it brought a bit of a smile to Aludra's lips. The twins seemed to be paying more attention to her than anyone else had in her whole life, besides Kristin, but that was different. She was flattered, but at the same time uncomfortable and cautious, in case they had something else up their sleeves intended for her. Her face had still a tinge of purple to it this morning when she woke up, but it had disappeared completely by now.

"All right, now you all know the deal with floo powder. And make sure you enunciate 'Diagon Alley' very clearly or you'll end up in who knows where, like poor Harry last year." Aludra cocked her head slightly at the mention of someone named Harry and she assumed they meant Ron's friend Harry Potter. He had been mentioned quite a bit during the previous day. Even celebrities need friends, she supposed. Fred was the first to go, disappearing in a flash of green. George put his arm around her shoulders and smiled.

"You look a bit worried, there. Never gone anywhere by the Floo Network, eh? No worries, it's a breeze...unless you're like Harry Potter and run your words together instead and end up in Knockturn Alley. Bloody good luck he had not to end up somewhere horrid instead. But I'm sure you'll be fine. Well, just to be on the safe side, perhaps you should stick some extra floo powder in your pocket although I hear the Arctic's particularly nice this time of year." With a wink, he vanished in a poof of emerald smoke.

Aludra hardly had time to think before Mr. Weasley gave her a bit of a nudge in the fireplace's direction. "Go on, we don't have much time. Just follow the twins' example." Timidly she grabbed a pinch of floo powder from the pot and, for a split second, she actually entertained the idea of putting an extra one in her pocket. The thought made her smirk with the ridiculousness of it. This would be a breeze. Even still, she took a deep, calming breath and threw the powder into the orange flames, turning them to the familiar green. _So far so good._ Without a second thought she stepped amidst the hungry, fiery tendrils that licked at her best cloak and clearly spoke, "Diagon Alley!" With a rush, she was sent spiraling upwards, hoping desperately that she had said it well enough for it to understand her. As she spun down and down, sometimes taking sharp turns that sent her stomach into her throat, she caught glimpses of other houses from through their chimneys. It was very surreal. A bit of panic gripped her heart when, after almost a full minute of this nauseating spinning, she hadn't reached her destination. But as soon as the thought crossed her mind, she shot out through a fireplace and landed hard on her bottom.

Coughing from the cloud of dust surrounding her arrival, she glanced up to see George offering her his hand to help her up. Ignoring it, she stood herself and uselessly patted at her clothing, desperately trying to get rid of as much of the soot as possible. In the end, she looked as dirty as before. Smiling amusedly, George stood with arms crossed and waited for her to finish. Seeing him blatantly staring at her in that fashion, she reached over and punched him hard in the shoulder.

"Ow! What was that for?" George rubbed at his upper arm in confusion. Aludra stood up to her full height, still at least a foot shorter than the twins.

"You know what. That was downright dirty and malicious." George smirked, his eyes twinkling, but with a kindness and almost an apology of sorts. Aludra almost seemed to be pouting in her irritation.

"But you have to admit that you enjoy the attention you're getting by being one of us, even if temporarily. My mother adores you, though she hardly knows anything about you, Fred and I are getting our amusement at your expense, Ginny and Ron I can't speak for, but they look up to you in a way, never having met someone of your unique experience before, and Percy…well Percy probably doesn't even realize you're still here, but that's just the way he is." Ruffling her hair playfully, he strolled off down Diagon Alley, probably in the direction of his brother, Fred, who she just now realized was not around anywhere that she could see. Readjusting her ponytail, she heard another of the Weasley children being catapulted from the fireplace behind her.

When the entire Weasley family, minus the twins of course, was standing in the street alongside Aludra, still dusting the black from their clothes and arms, they moved on to the purpose of their visit, school shopping. Aludra had never been school shopping before, but she had been in Diagon Alley the day before the departure of the Hogwarts Express before, so she was accustomed to the hectic hustle and bustle of it all. Mr. Weasley discretely reached in a pocket on the inside of his robe and handed a small drawstring bag to Aludra. She knew immediately that it was the money Dumbledore had given them on her behalf for those things she would need to start off the year. There wasn't much, but it was enough to get the bare essentials.

First stop was Flourish and Blotts for textbooks. Perusing the shelves with her booklist in hand, Aludra had her first encounter with the soon to be infamous Draco Malfoy. She had seen his father several times before on her little excursions about the wizarding areas of the city, most of them being in the various stores along Knockturn Alley. She spied him coming in the front door out of the corner of her eye. His father was absent, but she knew he seemed familiar by the shape of his face and the manner in which he carried himself. He spied her almost immediately and his shrewdly calculating mind recognized the fact that she was too old to be a first year and he hadn't met her before. With a few swift strides he reached the spot where she stood before the bookshelf, but she was prepared for him, adding her potions book to the stack already nestled in the crook of her left arm. They were worn and tattered, second-hand, but still useable (Ron receiving the books the oldest Weasley son had passed down through the rest, the latest being George and Fred, that were still on the booklist even through the years that had passed since the eldest had been a third year).

A couple of his cronies stood aloof in a corner and Malfoy moved to join them. As she continued to peruse the bookshelves for any that might interest her (she had always been an avid reader and enjoyed secretly learning spells) she realized that the boys were overtly staring at her, and not in a flattering manner. The snickered and whispered amongst themselves; she was the brunt of their jokes! She was appalled. A moment ago she had felt on top of the world like nothing could dampen her spirits and now these self-infatuated, spoiled little brats were making a fool of her and the entire store couldn't help but notice. They only knew her by what they had probably heard from their parents through the trail of gossip and what they could see right in front of them. Her cheeks burned in embarrassment as she abandoned her search and instead stepped hurriedly into line behind the last person. The line moved slowly in awkward silence and there were still twenty some people in front of her.

Soon they grew tired of their game and decided to take it up a notch. Bleach-blonde Malfoy turned his head towards a large, lumpy boy several heads shorter than him, but, keeping his eyes on Aludra, smiled maliciously.

"Did you know Hogwarts has a fund set up for 'poor unfortunates' like that new girl? What's her name again? Alaina? Alandra? No, no, that's not quite it…"

"'A loser' is more like it," the tall, troll-like fellow offered. It was set up, and everyone knew it. Insults like that didn't roll off that boy's tongue as easily as he had made it seem. The line moved forward and there were only about half a dozen customers ahead of her now, but more kept spilling in the door, immediately sensing the tension in the air.

"Well, my point about the Hogwarts fund was that they must not expect much out of her because she still has to wear the hand-me-down robes the orphanage gave her. Look, you can almost see her knees!" He paused, letting the words sink in, deepening the coloring in Aludra's cheeks. She couldn't believe someone could be so mean to someone they didn't even know. What was his problem! Did he just enjoy sensing the torment he put others through? It hit her; yes, he did, as did his father. Tormenting others was power. "Or perhaps one of the Weasley boys gave up one of his. It wouldn't surprise me. Always giving so generously, even to the chaff of the population like this one. No wonder they're so poor." He was going to get a taste of his own medicine.

As Aludra handed the man behind the counter her money, he smiled apologetically at her, recognizing her from one of her many trips to the store to sit in the corner and read the books she couldn't afford, she knew what area would be hitting below the belt for this Malfoy character: his vanity. Shoving her books into her mail-carrier bag, a Christmas present from a rich businessman who had taken pity on her one day in the streets when she was about ten, she spun on her heal to face the doors…and the boys. She was so fed up with Malfoy's antics and anticipated the payback with such excitement that she almost seemed to strut up to him and his goonies. Meeting his eyes with a terrible ferocity that lit up her own cobalt ones, she offered him a malicious smile and spoke loudly for the entire store to hear

"At least the Weasleys and I have the courtesy to wash our hair before going out in public, or are your parents cutting back on their expenses and you can't wash your hair as often as you should? Oh! Actually, I have a rough spot on my broom that could use some greasing, mind if I borrow some of yours? You obviously have plenty." And with that, she left the three boys staring in shock and amazement as she whisked out the front door and back onto the street. Not seeing any of the Weasleys nearby, Aludra figured she would continue on to the stores the others would be bypassing, like the owl store, and perhaps run into the twins again. She couldn't wait to tell them of her triumph over the Malfoy boy.

On her left she noticed one of the stores that sold owls, Magical Menagerie, and decided to see if anything interested her, heavens knew she had plenty of money to afford one of the less expensive ones. Slipping inside, the first thing she noticed was the smell. It was overpowering and she had to fight the urge to gag. Her eyes quickly adjusted to the gloom within the shop and saw cages and cages of animals of all sorts lining the walls. A heavy-browed, sallow-cheeked witch with thick, black glasses studied her from behind the counter. Offering the woman an uncomfortable smile, Ali moved along the shelves, studying the contents of the cages. One contained a couple of fur balls and they were humming loudly. Intrigued, she tipped her head to one side, a quirk of hers, and made as if to reach through the bars, but before she could, a loud raucous sounded from the far corner of the store.

There was a singular cage set apart from the rest, draped with a tattered, slightly mildewed rag, and a shrill scream was issuing from beneath. Something filled her with a sense of meaning as she gingerly stepped through the aisles. It was as if she had gone deaf, she couldn't hear any sound around her except the piercing call of the creature beneath that cloth. Her arm moved as if through molasses as she slid the fabric away to reveal a creature destined to be a huge part of her life. She could literally feel the weight of destiny pulling on her insides as the shrieking ceased and was replaced by the cooing of an owl; an owl that regarded her with yellow eyes that seemed to glow from within. Reaching her fingers through the rusted bars, she gently stroked the inky black, downy feathers. Nothing existed but the two of them for that moment in time.

She was suddenly very aware, then, of the presence of the witch who owned the place. Embarrassed, she withdrew her hands and masked the wonder that had been written so obviously upon her face and blushed modestly.

"He likes you. That's odd." Ali's head cocked to the side slightly in confusion. "Oh, no offence to your person, he's simply a pre-owned owl and old beyond the normal life span of your typical owl, and ill-tempered. This is the most docile I've ever seen him." Glancing back towards the very unique fowl, she knew it would be only too easy to haggle to a ridiculously low price.

Feigning boredom, she turned to survey the rest of the store and spied something she could pretend to be more interested in. As predicted, as Aludra was about to start baby talking to a miniature owl along the far wall, the store-keeper panicked and rushed over to convince Aludra of the benefits of that black owl.

"This one's cute, for sure, but I really think that black one is more your type. Kind of dark and mysterious with more personality than any other owl in here." Aludra shrugged and turned back to a tawny owl in a nearby cage. The black owl hooted, remonstrating her for playing games with the woman, but Aludra would not be deterred. The woman scuttled after her.

"He's experienced! That's earned through age that these others don't have." Aludra decided it was time to break this bargain down.

"What kind of price are we looking at here?"

"Well, he's not a bad owl, so maybe about-"

"He's old."

"Well, yes-"

"Which means the moment I walk out that door, he could die and I would lose all my money. As you can see, I can't exactly take that kind of risk."

"You do have a-"

"And he's pre-owned which means I'll have to work twice as hard to get his loyalty."

"That's very-"

"And he's black, which is quite unusual, so he'll be easily spotted, and we all know that owls will start being monitored again if Voldemort or some of his death-eaters…It's a risk." Glancing around at some other customers who had just entered the store, the woman leaned in close and whispered a more than reasonable price in her ear. Aludra looked over at the owl, meeting his eyes. The owl cocked his head to one side slightly in confusion.

"I'll take him," she pronounced, pressing the coins into the woman's hand.

A few minutes later, out on the street with the owl and cage in her hand and owl treats stuffed in the bag beside her books, she passed the broom store with its gaggle of too-young or too-poor children drooling through the front window. Though she told her self over and over how much she did not need a broom since she didn't plan on trying out for her quidditch team, she couldn't help but feel the tug of desire in her gut. Flying had been a wonderful escape from the world when other types of escape were inaccessible. The money pouch her friend had pressed into her hands the last night at the orphanage weighed heavily in her pocket. Kristin wouldn't need that money any time soon, not with new parents showering her with gifts. Aludra envied Kristin that, parents. It was a luxury Aludra didn't feel she would ever have. She didn't even want to think about how long Kristin had been saving up the money that now sat in her pocket. But how proud would she be if Ali did make it on to her house team and maybe even became famous some day? It would be all due to Kristin. As if on cue, she remembered the feel of the bat in her arm, the power of the connection of that bat to the bludger ball. Her competitive nature began to rear its head and she was convinced. Passing all the envious children stuck without, she spied the newest model, the firebolt, sitting boldly on display in the window. It was gorgeous, but way out of her price range. A Nimbus 2000, however, was perfect, in every way including price. Walking out of the store after purchasing the new broom, the children in the crowd started to push towards her to see if she had bought one of the longed after firebolts, but when she explained that it was only a nimbus 2000, they went back to their window drooling.

After that, it was only a couple small stops to get her cauldron and potions set and then back to the Leaky Cauldron to meet up with everyone else. When she entered, there was only Mr. Weasley seated at the bar, the rest of the family still out shopping for supplies. He smiled and waved her over when he saw her in the doorway, sliding a bar stool out for her. "Hi, Mr. Weasley. Day going well for you so far?" She stood beside the barstool, attempting to juggle her cumbersome purchases and still maintain politeness. "Besides the fact that the heat's making me sweat like mad, I'm just fine. Did you find everything you needed?" Over Mr. Weasley's shoulder Aludra noticed the innkeeper, Tom if she remembered his name correctly, glancing in her direction suspicioiusly. He was speaking with a hooded patron in the corner of the room and every now and again his gaze was directed most ardenty in her direction. Ignoring him for the moment, Aludra returned her attention to the flushed red-headed man gulping down glasses of water. "I found everything quite easily. It's not my first time here in Diagon Alley, but it was nice to be the one buying the school supplies instead of watched others do so instead." They both smiled and shared a small laugh at that. "I bet," he responded candidly. The black owl in one hand squaked loudly to remind her that she had not seen to his needs yet and he was running low on patience. "Well, I should go set my things down upstairs for now and see to my owl here. Which room am I in?" Turning towards the wooden stairs leading upwards, he motioned. "Up the stairs and third on your right. You're in there with Ginny and Hermione. Oh, and if you want to rest or anything upstairs, just remember that we'll be having dinner down here at about 5." "All right, thank you, Mr. Weasley. See you in a few hours, then. A nap sounds good, especially in this heat." With a nod from Mr. Weasley, she slowly stumbled up the stairs, trying to balance her new belongings. Third door on the right, Aludra twisted the nob and it swung open easily. There was a nice window on the far side overlooking the busy mass of London. Along the wall to her left was a bunk bed and a small single bed and on the wall to her right was a long table and an armoire. Beneath the window sat three Hogwarts trunks, the dark blue worn one being hers from the orphanage, but now with a Hogwarts insignia pressed into the top. Setting the owl down on the table along with her carefully wrapped broomstick, she loaded the rest of her newly acquired school supplies into the trunk and then laid down for a quick nap on the bottom bunk. Just before five the owl woke her with a curious intelligence that struck Aludra as odd. Deciding he needed a name, she set herself to the task of coming up with a good one by the end of the day. Fixing her hair, she slipped downstairs to where the Weasleys were all gathered, plus two new people she hadn't met yet. Ron was in mid-argument with a girl whose bushy brown hair blocked her face from the rest of them. A green-eyed boy with shaggy dark hair followed close after them. She had never met Harry Potter before, but she knew it was him immediately. Distractedly, her hand flicked to her neck where a single touch reassured her that her locket still hung in its usual place. He looked so familiar, but why? Hermione spied Ali almost immediately and scurried over and extended her hand in greeting.

"Hi, I'm Hermione." It was an awkward handshake with Crookshanks still purring contentedly in her arms, but it got the point across: Even if they didn't become the best of friends, it was better to have each other as semi-friends than semi-enemies. Ron realized his lapse as friend and quickly moved to make up for it before Hermione could show him up again.

"Oh, right, sorry. Aludra, these are my friends Hermione and Harry." Having already met Hermione, Harry and Aludra shook hands as well. With that they all moved to where Tom had pulled three tables together for their large party. Aludra sat down across from the twins this time, the perfect place from which to seek her revenge. Aludra could feel the familiar ache in her stomach that signaled hunger, but it was a mere ghost since coming to be with the Weasleys than it had before. After they ordered, everyone seemed caught up in their own businesses and Ali decided it was the perfect time to exact her revenge. Cautiously, avoiding suspicion, she slipped her wand out of the pocket in her robe and slid it along her leg, under the table. Taking careful aim at Fred's sneakers, she whispered the proper spell, barely audible above the din in the pub. She smiled satisfactorily as she saw her spell take action. Now it was George's turn; this would take a great deal more sneakiness than Fred's spell had. Returning her wand, she pulled out a miniscule dark blue glass vial with a pale powder inside it. Palming it, she awaited the proper moment when her revenge would be sublime. It wasn't long before she saw her chance. One of the men who worked here brought over their drinks and then went back to grab their food when George spied a friend of his out on the street and excused himself to go talk to her. With the others properly distracted, she slipped the cork from the vial's neck and tapped the meager contents into the glass across from her. Replacing the cork and vial, she swirled the glass around a few times to completely dissolve the powder; it hadn't even discolored the liquid, she was proud to note. Glancing along the table, she noticed Hermione watching her curiously. Placing her pointer finger against her lips asking for her secrecy a moment longer, Ali turned to accept the food being offered her. George quickly returned, attacking his food with vigor, as if in a race to finish. Something to do with that girl? She suspected it was so.

When he had downed it entirely, and given himself hiccups in the process, he drained his glass to wash it all down. Fred was finished as well and both stood to excuse themselves. Ali gripped the table: this was the moment when both would realize she wasn't one to trifle with. No sooner had Fred moved to step back when he discovered there was a problem and stumbled backwards, falling on his back, a comical look of surprise on his face. His shoelaces were knotted together. George couldn't help but laugh, but when he did he knew what the revenge upon his was. Instead of his usual laugh, a braying neigh filled the pub. Slapping a hand over his mouth from whence the sound emanated, it dawned on him that they had let their guards down and Aludra had gotten the best of them. Fred quickly realized that the shoelaces were not going to untie without magic and instead focused on trying to stand back up, without much success. No matter what George opened his mouth to say, it was a donkey's voice and loud beyond reason. Everyone but Percy and his parents were laughing hysterically, especially Ali who could hardly breathe from laughing so hard. Gasping for breath amidst the laughter that shook her body, Ali asked them if they yielded. Yet defiant, George let out a loud braying that sent Aludra into another fit of laughter. This was the most fun any of them had seen in a long time. One brother kept making it halfway to his feet and then falling over again while the other, trying to help him, kept his lips firmly clamped shut lest the donkey's braying escape him again. Finally, just as Aludra was sure she couldn't take any more of it, Fred relented.

"All right, all right, we yield. Fix us!" Grasping her wand firmly, she spoke the counter curse and Fred's shoelaces unknotted themselves accordingly. Scrambling to his feet, Fred glanced at his twin who brayed loudly at Aludra in frustration.

"And you? Do you yield?" George glared at her defiantly, but knew he had no other choice. Nodding reluctantly he accepted defeat. Pulling another tiny vial from her pocket, she emptied its contents into her own glass, mixed it all in, and handed it to George. Without a second thought he downed the entire thing, slamming the glass back down a little harder than he meant, wincing at the loudness of it. Gingerly he opened his mouth to speak…and his voice was again his own.

"That was awfully clever, little one. I'm impressed." Fred patted her on the head like she was a little puppy, Ali squinting at him in mock irritation. He laughed and started collecting his things. That night, Aludra, Hermione, and Ginny lay in their beds listening to the commotion going on outside. Something about Ron supposedly stealing Percy's Head Boy badge. "Life as a Weasley is exciting, isn't it, Aludra?" Ginny leaned down from the top bunk to see her on the bottom. Aludra smiled contentedly. "It is indeed." With that they all drifted off into peaceful, uninterrupted sleep, excited about the start of a new year school year and what Hogwarts would hold in store for them this time around. 


	4. Chapter 4

Ali took one look at the two small cars the ministry had sent before turning back to George in disbelief.

"So, what? Are the cars going to take half of us to the station and the rest of us get to take the subway or walk or something?" George laughed and ruffled her hair playfully.

"Never been in a magic car, eh? No worries, every one of us'll fit, trunks and all." To Aludra's surprise, he was right. The trunks of the cars seemed to expand to fit all of their meager belongings and, when they finally piled into the back seats of the cars, the cars seemed to expand as well to accommodate as many Weasleys (and friends) as was possible. She was sure they could've all fit into just one of the cars if they had wanted to, but that might attract undue attention from the Muggles that would be there. Squeezed between George and Fred (they seemed to like having her between them, whether it was to conjure up further pranks to pull on her, to keep an eye on her from pulling pranks on them, or, heaven forbid, to protect her in some way, she wasn't sure) they made the tedious drive to Kings Cross train station and unloaded themselves and their possessions from the cars. As soon as they were clear, the cars began their long, winding journey back to the elusive Ministry of Magic. The thought of how Mr. and Mrs. Weasley would be getting home crossed her mind, but she decided that they had their ways, probably apparating or something. The Weasleys, and Harry, Hermione, and Aludra, stretched out in a kindergartener's version of a 'line' and wheeled their school things toward the secret station that only wizards and their families knew of.

She was doing it; she was actually going to Hogwarts. Throughout the past few days she had, of course, known she would be, but somehow stepping through the bricks onto the platform where the Hogwarts Express would be waiting for them made it that more real. She couldn't remember the butterflies ever being worse than this moment, but she was sure more nerve-wracking moments would await her in the future. At last they reached the divider between platforms 9 and 10 with the magical 9¾ awaiting them in the middle. Honestly, she had no idea how they were supposed to find the platform; none of the children at the orphanage had ever known for sure, though there had been much speculation. Nothing prepared her, though, to see the twins run full speed at the brick barrier…and pass through it like it wasn't even there. Her heart skipped a beat the second she knew they should've hit the bricks and didn't. Looking around excitedly, she realized that none of the muggles were even paying attention. She wondered how they might react to see what she just had. The Ministry would probably be down here in a half a second fixing memories before things went to far. They were good at that, covering up what they didn't want known. The thought suddenly occurred to her: How much covering up had they done in her case? All Dumbledore had told her was that her grandmother had been trying to protect her from Voldemort and that's why Aludra had ended up where she had, but what made her need more protection than anyone else? Was her grandmother just a worry wort or was there more to it that Dumbledore hadn't told her. And the Ministry had been involved in putting her in a wizarding orphanage, so what else had they done? Something told her the Ministry had had a much bigger hand in the whole mess than Dumbledore had let on, and she was going to find out just how big…

"Come along, Aludra, dear. Your turn now." Snapping out of her reverie, she realized that only she remained, with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley waiting eagerly. It was almost time for the train to depart. Taking a deep breath, she picked up speed wheeling her trunk and other belongings until she was in a full run just as she met the wall and passed through. It was an amazing, yet disorienting feeling, and Fred had to catch her arm on the other side to keep her from stumbling and spilling her things all over the platform. Moving aside, they watched as Mr. and Mrs. Weasley followed them through and immediately began to hurry them onto the train cars. One of the men who worked on the train took the trunk and broom from her, but she held tight to the owl's cage, not wanting to let him out of her sight. Mrs. Weasley's eyes began to water as the train whistle sounded and she gave all her children one last hug before they boarded, including Harry and Hermione. Aludra turned to hop aboard the train when Mrs. Weasley stopped her and gave her a rib-crushing squeeze. Holding her by the shoulders, she looked Aludra square in the eyes to prove her sincerity.

"You are always welcome in our house whenever you need." Aludra knew this was the time to offer hope, even if it might be false hope.

"Well I haven't anywhere to spend next summer yet." With a smile she hugged the kind woman, tears welling up in her own eyes before she realized it. Despite all her protestation, one thought rose above the rest: would her mother have cried to see her boarding the train for Hogwarts, too? Willing back the tears that threatened to spill out onto her cheeks, she smiled, turned, and leapt aboard the train as the wheels began to spin. As the train cleared the station, and she began walking down the hall in the middle of the car, she realized her most immediate problem right now was finding a room with space for her. Moving through several full cars, she finally happened upon one car in particular that proved promising. At the far end of one of the cars, a sliding door was open and she could hear laughing and raised voices, like excited chit-chat. The fact that the door was open gave her hope that perhaps there was an empty seat within. Glancing in the door she saw four people within. The one who noticed her first was a girl with mocha colored skin and curly black hair. Her chocolate eyes danced with joy as she laughed at one of her friend's jokes. Spying Aludra peering in awkwardly from the hall, the girl smiled and beckoned to her.

"Looking for a seat? We have space here if you want." Ali felt relieved. Slipping inside she smiled at the others in a friendly way. There were three girls and a boy. The girl who had invited her in scooted to the other side of the car and sat between the girl and boy there. Stretching out her hand, she gestured for Aludra to sit and then introduced herself when she did.

"Th'name's Rica Clobbert. This here's Mandy Brocklehurst and Anthony Goldstein, but we call 'im Tony. And the girl next to you's Lisa Turpin." Rica seemed like a very personable girl and Aludra had to admit that she took a liking to her almost immediately.

"I'm Aludra Perse. Pleasure to meet all of you, and thanks for the seat."

"No worries, luv. We were just going on about our summers. Lisa spent hers with her unbelievably wealthy grandparents, as usual, but this time her grandparents spent their efforts on finding her a 'beau', as they call it." Lisa blushed, a faint pink rising in her cheeks; it was a very dainty blush.

"Very old-fashioned, them. I actually have to go through the whole debutant thing when I come of age and all that. Not looking forward to that, I promise you." She brushed her light-blonde bangs out of her face and smiled timidly. She seemed like a very shy kind of girl, very different from Rica's overwhelming boisterousness, but they complemented one another well.

"Maybe you can get that handsome Cedric bloke to escort you through that whole big ordeal, when it comes around, that is." Lisa gave Mandy a withering look. She wasn't so cute and demure now. Obviously there was a button to avoid there.

"We're just friends, Mandy, I've told you all that. Sure, Grams is trying her best to set the two of us up, but it would just be awkward; we've been pals since I was still in diapers."

"Sure, sure, but you can't deny how absolutely gorgeous he is and you would be the envy of every girl to snag him up." Mandy was obviously one of those would-be envious girls. Mandy was a little heavier than the other girls, but not by much, then came Rica who was thin, yet still curvy, and then Lisa and Aludra in the 'stick-figure' category, though Ali was at least a head taller than Lisa. Anthony was tall as well, but thin and lanky; built like a football player.

"So Ali, what's your story then, luv?" Caught off guard, Aludra stared blankly for a moment.

"Oh…um…what do you mean, exactly?" Rica leaned forward with an eager expression on her face and lowered her voice, as if she was about to be privy to the greatest gossip in the world.

"You know, parents, siblings, where you're from, the like."

"Well, I'm an orphan, so dunno about parents or siblings, but I've lived in London as long as I can remember. Couple of days ago the Headmaster showed up at the orphanage to collect me and my few belongings because apparently they made some sort of mistake in my case and now are accepting me as a third year here. So I spent the last couple of days with the Weasleys, very nice family I must add, and now I'm here." Oddly, Rica's eyes seemed to light up even more at the mention of the Weasleys.

"The Weasleys, really? Yes, quite a nice family if I do say so myself." The other three let out huge guffaws of laughter (well, Lisa wasn't really a guffaw, but as much of one as she could manage) and Tony nudged Rica hard in the ribs. Rica became very cross all of a sudden and glared at her three friends. Amidst the tears of laughter, Mandy was able to explain their actions.

"Rica fancies that Fred Weasley, ever since the first moment she laid eyes on him. It's a sick, sick obsession," she teased. Biting her tongue Rica gave Ali a half-smile in her embarrassment. Ali smiled back at her with a knowing smile.

"Well, I can see why. The twins are quite a charming pair if they're not constantly plotting how to trip you up next." The conversation moved on to more casual topics, like bands and quidditch. The others were very excited to hear that Ali was going to try out for beater of her house if she could, maybe one of the other positions, as well, if beaters were already taken. Eventually they ran out of things to talk about so they digressed into a silly game of Go-fish in which Lisa continually gave herself away with giggling. Time passed and before they realized it, the sky was dark outside and the moon was the only outside light to be had. Inside, the lanterns shone brightly, swaying with the movement of the train. Ali had just made another set when there was a knock on the door of their compartment and they all looked up to see a ruggedly handsome boy with dirty blonde hair and sterling-tinted gray eyes. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw him and, for the first time in a while, she worried about the way she looked in others' eyes.

"Cedric!" Lisa jumped up from her seat by the window and hurried over to throw her arms around his neck as he opened the compartment door. He chuckled at her enthusiasm.

"Wow, Lisa, you'd think we hadn't seen each other all summer."

"Don't feel special, she does that to everyone." Mandy craned her neck slightly to sneak a peek at Rica's cards while she was distracted. She realized Ali was watching her and gave a sly wink.

"Come in, join us! We're in the middle of a game of Go-fish but you can jump in if you'd like." Cedric gave Lisa a questioning look and just smiled.

"I think I'll pass, Lis, but thanks for asking. I was just passing by and noticed you lot so I figured I'd say 'hi' and not be completely snobbish and rude." Cedric stood in the doorway, leaning against the jam in a very confident sort of way, but he still seemed a little awkward in a shy sort of way. She realized that he must normally be a very shy boy and it comforted her to know that even a handsome, confident boy like him could have his own social issues. In the slightly uneasy silence that followed, he glanced at Ali and pretended to notice her for the first time. She had seen plenty of bad acting in her lifetime to know that he was indeed pretending.

"I don't believe we've ever met, I'm Cedric Diggory." He straightened up and extended his hand to her, which she gladly shook.

"Aludra Perse. Nice to meet you." His head cocked to the side momentarily as if he was trying to process the name.

"You don't go by anything less complicated, do you?" Aludra smiled.

"My friends call me Ali." She wasn't exactly lying, except for the plural on 'friend'.

"Well, Ali, it was very nice to meet you and I'm sure I'll see you all around the grounds at some point. I should be on my way, though, my mates are waiting on me." With a wave, he turned to leave. Suddenly they heard the train braking and Cedric almost fell sideways from the unexpected jolt. Mandy pressed her face against the window, trying to see out, while Rica glanced at her watch.

"There's no way we're there yet. What's going on?" Cedric glanced up and down the corridor as they felt the train continue to slow at a rapid pace.

"I'm not sure, but I don't like it." The train gave a jolt as it stopped completely. Cedric grabbed onto the door jam to keep from falling over. Without warning the lanterns all went out, plunging them all into darkness. They could hear a whimpering from down the hall in one of the other compartments. Ali's heart beat really fast and she gripped the edge of the chair in anticipation.

"Someone's getting on the train!" Mandy had wiped a tiny area of the window clean from the steam of their breath and was pressing against it as much as was humanly possible. From somewhere to her right, Ali could hear Lisa breathing very quickly and loudly, an edge of panic in the sound.

"Oh God, grab a bag, she's gonna hyperventelate again." Tony began scrambling around in the trunk over his head at Rica's alert. Cedric, who until that time had still been in the doorway, pushed his way in and shut the compartment door quietly.

"Everyone just needs to stay calm. I'm sure this has all been planned and approved by Dumbledore." Scooting around Aludra's feet, he sat in the empty seat between her and Lisa and put his arm around her.

"I can't find a bag!" Now Tony was beginning to worry.

"Don't worry about it, Tony, Lisa's gonna calm down and be ok, right,. Lisa?" Aludra guessed that she gave a feable nod, though she wasn't watching her anymore. The others seemed to be practically blind in the darkness, but Aludra kept it a secret that she could still see fairly well, though in sepia tones with horrible depth perception. Her eyes were focused on the door of the compartment where a dark, shadowy figure was moving. Without touching it, the figure caused the door to slide open slowly and stood, watching them. Well she guessed it was watching them because it moved it's head from side to side, but the billowy cloak it was wearing came so low that not a bit of it's face was visible. Almost immediately the others realized they weren't alone and Cedric had to press his hand over Lisa's mouth to keep her from screaming out in terror. Not an inch of the creature beneath the cloak was visible, but it was at least 7 feet tall and filled the entire doorway. Through the small, low opening in the hood, the creature drew a long, rattling breath and, in that breath, seemed to suck all the heat from the air. It was so cold in the compartment that they could see their breath hanging in the air now. Cedric's arm was touching hers because of the cramped quarters and she could feel the goose bumps the freezing air, and probably the appearance of this strange creature, brought. A shiver went down her spine as the thing drew another long breath. It was as if all the horrible feelings from her past were weighing down upon her again. There weren't specific memories, but feelings of loss and helplessness that threatened to overwhelm her. She gasped in horror and quickly clamped her hand over her mouth to stifle the sound. From who knows where, an incredible hatred rose up in her and she felt very protective of the people in the compartment and this…thing…was a threat. She felt a rumbling that started down in the low parts of her chest, vibrating her ribs in the low base notes. The creature turned towards her and stared at her for a good long time. Taking a step in her direction, it began sniffing the air like a dog on the scent of something. When it took another step towards her, she jerked involuntarily away from it, bumping Cedric's shoulder hard. Instead of yelping in pain, he put his arm across her in a protective manner and she leaned against him a little harder.  
Without a second thought, the creature turned back towards the door where a white light was eminating from down the hall. As if in fear, it fled down the hall in the opposite direction and disappeared. After a moment, the lights of the train came back on and they felt the strain as it began to pick up speed again. The creatures were gone. Sitting up slowly, Aludra shook her head as if to dispel some sense of a dream she had been caught in. Blinking her eyes a couple of times to adjust to the bright light again, she glanced around at the others. Tony was checking on Rica who seemed paler than before and definitely shaken up and Cedric was seeing to Lisa who looked as if she was going to be sick and on the verge of tears. Taking a deep breath, she leaned her head against the back of her seat, thankful that nothing serious had happened. That white light that had chased the creature away still bugged her, though. She knew she hadn't imagined it, which means someone had done magic and had known how to get rid of those…things. Taking out her pony tail, she ran her hands through her hair, massaging her scalp a bit to destress.

"You growled at it." Aludra glanced up to see who was being addressed, and realized it was she. "I heard you, I know it was you." Mandy stared right at her, not breaking her gaze for a moment. Ali was so shocked she couldn't respond. She thought she had gotten away, that noone had noticed, but she had foolishly let herself get caught up in the moment and had risked betraying her biggest secret. There had to be a way to play it off as just a personality quirk of hers, the whole growling at mysterious and dangerous creatures thing. Without missing a beat, Cedric jumped in on her behalf.

"Mandy, calm down. I heard it, too." Ali looked at him in surprise. Where was he going with this? "But it wasn't Aludra, it was that creature that was in here." Mandy wasn't convinced.

"No-" Rica cut her off.

"From your seat, Mandy, it could very well 'ave been the creature you 'eard an' not Ali. I 'eard it, too, but I'm sure it was that thing. Ali 'as no reason to growl at something that's threat'nin' to attack 'er." Mandy gave a hard look at Ali before letting it go.

"I suppose I could've made a harmless mistake. Forgiven?" Ali smiled, and felt a little guilty that she should be the one apologizing, not Mandy.

"Of course," not raising her voice over a whisper. Cedric gave her a reassuring pat on the knee as he rose to his feet.

"I should be going, then. People are waiting for me and I am long overdue. Nice meeting you, Ali." Shaking her hand again, he smiled at her and whisked out of the room and down the hall. Her heart skipped in the aftermath of that amazing smile. Ali wasn't the type to allow her heart to be won so easily, but something about Cedric caught her by surprise.


	5. Chapter 5

Looking back, the rest of that night was kind of a blur in Aludra's mind, but several things still stand out contrast. Cedric's silvery gray eyes made her heart quicken every time she remembered them from that day. If she took the time to think about them, she could actually get lost in those eyes. They were some of the most gorgeous eyes she had ever seen in a man.

The carriages that took them from the Hogsmeade train station up to the castle were drawn by some kind of magic, because there were no horses to pull them. It was a little eery, but the girls and Tony didn't' give her a chance to do anything but notice vaguely.

The sorting was the worst, and the most prominent in her mind. A short little wizard dragged her to the front of the great hall and had her stand there for at least ten minutes while all the professors stared and whispered about the goofy-looking 14 year old waiting to be sorted. One middle-aged man with long greasy black hair kept favoring her with this look, almost like he recognized her, but couldn't quite place her. A professor who was probably around the same aged was horribly scarred and looked weary beyond his years. Like the man with the long, crooked nose had looked at her, so she looked at this man. There was something all too familiar about him, but trying to place him was like fishing through molasses for some hidden memory just beyond her reach. His face, however, was expressionless as he glanced in her direction, not offering any hint towards what his thoughts were, so she pushed it aside for the time being; something to look into at a later time. She found out during dinner, from a girl in her house and year, that the professor with greasy hair and a crooked nose was their Potions teacher, Severus Snape, and the pale man with the scars was their new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Remus Lupin (apparently Dumbledore had announced this before the start of the meal after Aludra had taken her seat, but there had been too much adrenaline in her system at the time to catch anything in particular that he had said).

The students were mostly self-involved at that point, but as soon as the first years filed in through the side door and hopped in line to be sorted, every eye was on her. Last to be called, she visibly shook as the last of the first years skipped happily to her seat and the room hushed in anticipation. The only other person who had caused this much excitement at sorting was Harry Potter; she knew that, but at the same time, she knew the fame and pressure in her respect wouldn't last more than a month. She had it lucky, unlike poor Harry. She couldn't even begin to imagine the pressure he was under, being the only one to ever survive the killing curse, not to mention one cast by Lord Voldemort himself. Despite all this, however, it took all her strength to keep from shaking as she perched on the edge of the three-legged stool and had the tattered old hat placed upon her head. As she gazed out at her fellow students, she noticed Rica at the Hufflepuff table and Tony, Mandy, and Lisa at the Ravenclaw with their backs to Rica's all offering her smiles of encouragement. It was reassuring to know that not everyone was surreptitiously passing judgement on her that night. Like Cedric's eyes that first night she met him, the words of the hat would follow her every day of her life, taunting her with their hidden meanings. The sorting hat settled down upon her brow and she could hear it processing her, as though his voice was in her very mind, though it was only the effect of having a hat talk while practically swallowing her head inside it.

"Oh my, very interesting. Hmm…yes…strong-willed, intelligent, courageous, just like your father, yet reserved, but kind like your mother…" These words had caught her off guard and if she hadn't been holding her breath at this point, she would've gasped from the pure shock of it: the hat had known her parents. Had probably, in fact, sat upon their heads and sorted them into the houses of their destiny as it was doing for her now. "But I sense the cunning, the strength, and the pull of destiny from the long line of Slytherin wizards and witches who have come before you, as well." Did that mean those who predeceased her had been evil? Possibly those who had paved the way for the arrival and rise to power of the Dark Lord? And then, when he took on that leadership role, been his followers, the Death Eaters? What about this destiny he spoke of. Was it to carry on in that manner? To continue the struggle to overthrow all that is good in the world? This was too much for her to deal with all at once. For the first time, she hoped desperately that she would be sorted into any of the other three houses, even Hufflepuff, in order to escape that uncertain and volatile destiny. She had thought coming to Hogwarts would give her a simpler life, allow her to be just another kid whose greatest worry was getting the high enough marks on her owls and newts. "Hmm, very difficult, indeed. Your very blood is pulling in different directions, trying to influence you towards each of the houses." _Just choose already and end this horrible limbo!_ her entire brain screamed. The hat chuckled. "Well, you certainly don't have your mother's patience. Well, there's only one direction to send you in…" Then, with a powerful bellow, he announced, "Slytherin!" Her heart had sunk and she thought she'd be sick right there in front of everyone.

The next thing she could remember, as she lay in bed processing all of this that night in before drifting off to sleep, was blinking away her stupor in time to realize that she was sitting amongst her fellow Slytherins and Professor Dumbledore was giving the signal for the feast to begin. Food appeared on the platters up and down the table with the assistance of a little magic. A tiny first year boy across from her smiled sheepishly, obviously noticing the cloudiness disappearing from her eyes. He was a shrimp of a boy; pale with a shock of auburn hair on his head. He looked as out of place at this table as she felt. She smiled back at him, which made his icy blue eyes dart back down to his empty plate. She recalled thinking that she had never eaten so much in one sitting before in her entire life. There was such an abundance of delicacies, many of which she'd never even heard of before, and everything was incredibly delicious…except the blood pudding; she didn't care much for that and bypassed it altogether.

Somehow she managed to avoid contact with her housemates that evening and now found herself laying in bed, staring up at the ceiling, and trying to find answers to all the questions pressing in on her from all directions. Her ancestors on at least one side of her family were, for the most part at least, Slytherins; that much she knew. She also knew that her parents hadn't been. 'Strong-willed, intelligent, courageous', that sounded like her father could be either a Gryffindor or a Ravenclaw. And reserved, but kind seemed very likely to be Hufflepuff. She wondered if anyone good had ever come out of Slytherin. Reason said that a child's most influential years were before they turned eleven, for sure, but probably also the first few years at this school. Aludra had bypassed those first, vulnerable years, and had therefore, possibly, bypassed the rule that all those from Slytherin had a sinister core. She was trying to give herself hope. But then again, what was so wrong with leaning towards the darker side of magic? There was more power there, for sure, and a higher tendency for greatness. She could famous one day if she honed her skills and stayed focused. People would bow at her feet instead of forcing her to do disgusting things in dark alleyways late at night or paying her practically nothing to run errands and do chores for them around the city in the worst weather imaginable. She could be respected for the first time in her life, and that wasn't so bad, was it? Her hand wandered, once again, to the locket that lay cold against the breastbone beneath her nightgown. Pulling the locket out, she pried it open to see the pictures of her parents that she had memorized when she was barely 6, but the Slytherin common rooms and dorms were situated deep beneath the Black Lake, as one of their prefects had told them, and there were no windows to get moonlight through. She needed to have her parents with her tonight, of all nights, and the memory of the pictures in her head just wasn't going to suffice.

Slipping out from under the sheets, she quietly opened the trunk, feeling around for the pair of muggle jeans and t-shirt she had snuck into her trunk under Mrs. Weasley's nose. She dressed quickly, not even taking time to put on a bra or socks. It was warm enough yet that she wouldn't need her school robe to keep her warm. Now, she did, however, remember someone during the blurred evening mentioning that the teachers and sometimes the prefects would patrol the halls at night on occasion. Carefully, in her very worn in sneakers, she made her way down the stairs of the dormitory, but it didn't matter. As soon as she hit the common room, a boy in a dark green armchair by the fire looked up from his book to see who was trying to sneak out this late at night. It must've been almost one in the morning at this point. Disappointed, but trying not to show it, Aludra nodded her head in greeting to the boy. He looked to be around seventeen, a seventh year. He was tall and well built, with muscular arms that she could see some of the definition of even through his t-shirt. He had a hard jaw line which could actually be handsome if not for the fact that he was wearing his hair long and shaggy. He had a few days' worth of growth on his chin and neck. She glanced towards the door, wanting to be out of there as soon as possible without causing suspicion. He nodded in return and she hastily walked towards the exit from the common room into the dungeon-like basement of the castle. When she had almost reached the door, he spoke up.

"I hear the owlry is a decent spot to go to think at night, when all the owls are out hunting. You can reach it from a stairway from the lawn to the right of the front entrance of the school." Pausing she turned to see that he hadn't even looked up from his book.

"Thanks," she offered softly and hurried out the door. She didn't encounter anyone on her way to the owlry, not a single teacher or prefect or lingering ghost. Despite her quick pace and the flight of steps leading up to the owlry, she wasn't out of breath in the least when she reached the top. Through the open doorway, the communal roosts were practically empty, the owls being nocturnal and out catching their nightly prey. One of the windows looked out on the Forbidden Forest where the moon was sitting perfectly in the sky. It was only a half moon, but its beauty still triggered something in her brain that made her yearn to be running, carefree in its soft glow. Part of her loved the nocturnal life, but she had tried that once and it hadn't really worked with the whole being human and having responsibilities in the daytime more so than the night. It had been liberating though, and she smiled, remembering how it had felt. Ignoring the droppings that covered the stone floor, she crossed to the window and leaned against the frame as she pulled the locket out from beneath her robe. Slipping it over her head, she held it in front of herself, tracing the crest engraved on the front with the pad of her finger. She was surprised the crest hadn't been worn away from years of doing that, but then again, magic could be unpredictable. In the moonlight, the gold of the chain and locket softened to a pale, almost glowing color. Pressing her fingernail into the crease between the two pieces, it popped open, showing her what she had been needing all night; her parents.

The first picture was her father and mother from the chest up, facing one another and holding hands. Her mother wore a delicate white veil that seemed to float over her long, amber tinted blonde hair that flowed down her back. She had just the right amount of makeup to cover up any blemishes that all humans inevitably had, but not to hide her natural beauty which had undoubtedly been what stole her father's heart at first glance. Her small smile seemed so delicate, so fragile, as if one little word could cause it to vanish forever. Her father stood half a head taller, with hair the color of a starless night. His shoulders were squared back in a very proud way that complimented his round face and high, stately cheekbones. He looked as if he could've passed for royalty, had royalty still existed in his day and age. The smile on his lips perfectly mirrored that of his new wife's, delicacy and all. She figured they must've married during all the troubles with Voldemort, which would give any newly wed couple misgivings about the future they were entering into together. Her eyes were the brightest, purest blue Aludra had ever seen, while her father's were a stormy gray. The intelligence behind both those eyes was evident, even in a photo such as this. Sometimes the figures in the pictures would even turn to reenact a kiss or two from that eventful day. It wasn't the same as having them there with her, but it was as close as she could get.

In the other picture were four boys, one being her father, and two girls, one of which was her mother. In the center stood her father with his arm around her mother's waist as she stood to his right. Beside him stood another man with black hair and spectacles, his arm around a gorgeous red-head with green eyes as bright as her mother's blue ones. Flanking these four, on either end, were a short, timid kind of guy who didn't have even a hint of the good looks of his three male friends, and a rather tall, handsome boy. Having all six of them crammed into one picture, it was difficult to make out specific details about any of the figures. They were all dressed in their school robes, all of them, she now knew, being Gryffindor, except for her mother who was a Ravenclaw. She hadn't known the house colors until tonight, so now she knew that her suspicions of the hat's words were correct. Behind them stood the main entrance of the castle. She assumed they took the photo on their last day at that school, because a banner kept falling from above the picture frame behind them to the ground as it tore loose from its ties, and it read 'Farewell, Hogwarts!!!'. The figures all waved and squeezed one another in side hugs. They were all so happy, a single moment of joy in what must've been a hard time, what with Voldemort running around killing any good wizard or witch that crossed his path and scheming about who knew what.

She could almost picture students taking exams or listening intently to lectures when someone would come and ask to speak with them in the hall and then tell them of the death of some loved one that had been caught up in the war raging in other parts of the country and world. The other students would all hold their breath when that professor would open the door to call out the name of one of their classmates, praying to anyone listening above that it wouldn't be their name called, not today, not this time. It must've been terrible having to sit in a classroom, dealing with the everyday monotony while knowing at the same time there was a war going on outside the boundaries of the school, feeling helpless not being able to fight alongside older friends or relatives. It must have been a bittersweet graduation celebration, knowing they were moving from the nerve-wracking safety of the school to go out into the world, wondering who would betray who and who would be killed in the process. Somehow, she couldn't put her finger on it, but she had this strong feeling that she would experience that herself while at this school. They all would. But she couldn't deal with that until it happened.

Closing the locket, she held it to her chest and closed her eyes. _Please, give me the strength to get through whatever is coming,_ she prayed to the God Kristin had always spoken of in their younger years. She knew she wasn't meant to be evil; it just wasn't a part of who she was. Whenever she thought of Voldemort, her very instincts told her he was evil and she hated him for all he had done to all the good wizards and witches that had come before her. At least half of the students in this school, she guessed, were still feeling the effect of that war with Voldemort. It had torn apart her family before she even had the chance to know them. It had taken parents from children and lain blame and suspicion where it was not warranted. _I want to be good, not evil._ _Not evil…_ Giving her locket one last kiss as she closed it and returned it to its place around her neck beneath her shirt, she glanced back up at the moon, wondering if somewhere her parents were looking at the same moon, thinking about her the way she was of them. She wiped away the single tear that stood on her cheek, and returned to her dorm and bed to get some sleep before having to start classes the following morning.


End file.
